Garment Stay-Up Tab

ABSTRACT

The Garment Stay-Up Tab is a flat, flexible, tape device that keeps garments such as stockings and long gloves fastened in their intended positions by means of a sanitary, hypo-allergenic adhesive substrate, with its externally visible tab being colored or cut in a decorative design or having a decorative applique applied to it.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Women wearing high socks or stockings find that they require somefastening in order to remain in place in spite of the stresses ofgravity and the garments' elasticity. They usually wear a garter belt orapply glue to the skin and garment to keep the garments in place. Thesame applies to arm sleeves and long gloves, and even, traditionally,men's socks. Garter belts are not to everyone's tastes or comfort andcan be an inconvenience and added complication to dressing, and liquidadhesive can be messy or unpleasant to apply or to wear, and simpledouble-sided adhesive tape does not have the same gripping surface toretain heavier garments.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to means of holding up stockings,socks, and other items of clothing often held in place by friction butalso subject to sagging due to gravity, elasticity, and wear. Thisinvention distinguishes itself by being sanitary and by being convenientto apply and remove, in contrast to solutions such as garters and glues,and in a greater holding power over simple double-sided adhesive tape,as well as by the aesthetic aspect of the exposed tab.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The objective of this invention is to provide a convenient, tidy, andnon-irritant means of holding garments such as socks, stockings,sleeves, and gloves in place. The convenience will come in the form ofan adhesive tab sized appropriately to hold such garments in place. Thesanitary aspect is addressed by the fact that the cloth tab is pre-cutand packaged in such a way that it will be as easy to apply as aprepackaged, adhesive bandage. Using a material with hypo-allergenicadhesive will allow the product not to cause irritation to most users'skin. This also proves as comfortable to wear and as easy to remove asan adhesive bandage. To apply the tab, the wearer will first remove theprotective strip from the wearer-facing surface and apply the adhesiveto the skin, and then continue by unfolding the tape, removing theprotective strip, and applying the adhesive facing of surfaces that wereinside the fold to inner and outer sides of the garment hem, folding thetape along its original crease to grip the garment.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts the facing of the tab external to the form it takes whenworn.

-   -   The tab will be folded over the hem of the garment to be held in        place along the fold line (a).    -   The lower half (b) of the tab bears a hypo-allergenic adhesive,        and it is intended to be pressed against the skin of the leg or        arm (or wherever the edge of the garment is intended to be held        in place), providing an anchor to the wearer's body.    -   The upper half (c) of the tab is cut and/or printed in a        decorative manner or has a decoration applied, as it will be        visible on the outside of the garment that it holds in place.

FIG. 2 depicts the facing of the tab internal to the form it takes whenworn

-   -   The tab will be folded over the hem of the garment along the        fold line (a),    -   allowing the garment to be gripped by two adhesive faces (b).

FIG. 3 depicts the tab (a) as it would appear when holding a stocking inplace.

DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART

Currently on the market, solutions are garter belts, glues, and simpledouble-sided tapes. Garter belts introduce some complexity andinconvenience for dressing. Glues also introduce inconvenience andpotential mess and might prove unsanitary, be absorbed in the garmentand cause damage, or act as an irritant to the wearer. The double-sidedtape solutions reviewed had fewer adhesive surfaces and were thereforenot useful for heavier or higher-elasticity garments such as stockingsor wool socks.

Prior art includes multiple garter-type implementations from the CPCScheme A41F 11/04, 11/08, 11/14, 11/16, 11/18, and 13/00:

U.S. Pat. No. 701998, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,557,410, 5,353,441, 1,772,274,1,781,673, 1,851,787, 10,383,383

1. The Garment Stay-Up Tab is a device to keep clothing such as leg andarm wear from sliding down, fastening them in their intended positionswith the convenience of an adhesive bandage, comprising: Element 1: oneadhesive patch adhering to the wearer's skin; Element 2: a secondadhesive patch adhering to the inner side of the item of clothing;Element 3: a third adhesive patch adhering to the outer side of the itemof clothing; Element 4: and any decorative surface, shape, or appliqueon the outside, visible patch.